While fantasy football has grown wildly in popularity, fantasy basketball has not seen the same success over the years.  This is because fantasy basketball's most popular scoring formats are tedious to play and fundamentally flawed.  We're finally fixing it.

We’ve all been there. It’s a big match against your league rival, but as luck would have it, your #1 player has a 2-game week. Even worse? Your opponent’s top player has a jam-packed 4 game slate. If this happens in the playoffs, there’s almost nothing you can do as your season goes down the drain.

Take a look at the matchup below from a league that uses 9-category scoring. The result is likely already decided by the number of games your players have before a single game is even played:

At Sleeper, after 2 years of internal and beta testing, our team has come up with an innovative way to address this flaw.  It's called Game Pick.

This unique scoring system allows team managers to pick a single game per week for each starter to count towards their team's total score — ensuring an even number of games played and introducing a new element of strategy to the game.

This video covers the mechanics in further depth:

Here are six reasons why you and your league mates should give Game Pick a shot this year:

1. COVID-19

Evidenced by the NFL, players will inevitably contract COVID-19 throughout the season, thus reducing availability. Sleeper's Game Pick mode  ensures managers do not get an unfair advantage due simply to more games played.

2.  Back-to-back Rest Days

On a similar note, injuries and rest days on back-to-back are more prevalent than ever, especially so in this shortened offseason. Teams will likely play it safe in 2021 when it comes to player health and limit the # of games played for top talent.

3. Rescheduling

Rescheduled games are almost a certainty this year which could make for even more lopsided schedules. This is not a concern if players are capped at one game a week.

4. Set and Forget

For lazy owners out there, say goodbye to daily adjustments and hello to set and forget. A quick check-in at the start of the week and you’re good to go.  If you pick a game that your player doesn't play in, you can simply pick again.

5. More Strategy and Nuance

On the other side of the token, fantasy fanatics have more decisions to make and statistics to consider when picking a game for their player. What is the opponent’s DRtg? Is the player on the second night of a back-to-back? Is it a...revenge game?

6. More Fun

Picking the right game is insanely rewarding. Picking a dud game feels punishing. These emotions are what make games fun year over year.

For this unprecedented COVID season why not try an unprecedented way to play? You just might discover your new favorite format!